Hybrid Memristor–CMOS Implementation of Combinational Logic Based on X-MRL

A great deal of effort has recently been devoted to extending the usage of memristor technology from memory to computing. Memristor-based logic design is an emerging concept that targets efficient computing systems. Several logic families have evolved, each with different attributes. Memristor Ratioed Logic (MRL) has been recently introduced as a hybrid memristor–CMOS logic family. MRL requires an efficient design strategy that takes into consideration the implementation phase. This paper presents a novel MRL-based crossbar design: X-MRL. The proposed structure combines the density and scalability attributes of memristive crossbar arrays and the opportunity of their implementation at the top of CMOS layer. The evaluation of the proposed approach is performed through the design of an X-MRL-based full adder. The design is presented with its layout and corresponding simulation results using the Cadence Virtuoso toolset and CMOS 65nm process. The comparison with a pure CMOS implementation is promising in terms of the area, as our approach exhibits a 44.79% area reduction. Moreover, the combined Energy.Delay metric demonstrates a significant improvement (between ×5.7 and ×31) with respect to the available literature.